What is FASD and is drinking safe during pregnancy?
- Oct 21, 2020
- 2 min read
Updated: Nov 25, 2020
It is a story of Nanny and his brother. As a toddler, she struggled to learn to walk. At school, she was always in the lower sets and had to copy from her friends just to keep up.
Her brother was diagnosed with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Disorder (FASD) when he was two. She saw similarities in the ways he did things with the way she did things and started to wonder if she might have it too.
Her mum struggled to get a diagnosis for her. This meant that she wasn't getting the kind of support that she needed. Because of all the different agencies that had to be involved, it took a year to find out that she'd been affected by her birth mother drinking alcohol while she was in the womb, just like her brother.
She still struggles with things like telling the time and organizing herself, but now she knows about her condition and she is learning how to cope with it. It's great to know that there is some awareness in public. However, every mother must know the consequences of alcohol use during pregnancy.
Consequences of Alcohol use during pregnancy
It has been established while doing evidence-based research that a little drinking can be risky and may result in miscarriage, stillbirth and prematurity.
It is important to know that a share also reaches to developing babies when you drink alcohol. It is pointed out that if you take even a single drink, it quickly travels through the bloodstream, crosses the placenta and enters the baby's circulation. Because your baby breaks down alcohol more slowly than adults, it may end up with a higher level of blood alcohol than you.
There is a considerable danger for your growing baby in many ways. As little as one drink a day can raise the odds of miscarriage or having a baby with low birth weight and raise your child's risk of problems with learning speech attention, span language and hyperactivity.
FASD complications
FASD is a diagnostic term used to describe a range of problems associated with prenatal alcohol exposure. A developing baby cured to term after in utero exposure to alcohol is subject to several negative effects.
Such as:
· Small head sides
· Shorter than average height
· Low body weight
· Poor coordination
· Hyperactive behaviour
· Poor memory
· Learning disabilities
· Vision or hearing problems
· Problems with heart, kidneys or bones
But be aware, FASD is a hundred percent preventable by not drinking alcohol at all during pregnancy. It also is important to note that all types of alcohol are equally harmful including all wines and beer.
Conclusion
I know what you're thinking: what about just having a small single drink here and there while you're pregnant? Well, plenty of women have had an occasional glass of wine during pregnancy and their kids have turned out just fine.
But doctors stress that there’s no way of knowing how much alcohol is harmful or whether it's safe to drink at any given point in pregnancy? So it's better to be safe than sorry and avoid drinking altogether. If you still find difficulty in conquering addiction, read these books:-
In the end, let’s see this amazing video to save us from Alcohol use disorder.
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